A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume I, Part 94

Author: Paddock, B. B. (Buckley B.), 1844-1922; Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago, New York, The Lewis publishing co.
Number of Pages: 968

USA > Texas > A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume I > Part 94

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MARSHALL S. PIERSON, president of the Haskell National Bank, Haskell, Texas, is a man who has for years figured prominently in the business and social circles here. Briefly, a sketch of his life and ancestry is as follows :

The Pierson family first made its appearance in America at an early period in the history of this country. On'e branch found a home in South Carolina, from whence some members moved to Alabama, settling principally in Tus- caloosa county, where William Howell Pierson, the father of Marshall S., was born in October, 1814, son of William Pierson and one of a family of five children, two sons and three daughters, that lived to be grown. In February, 1848, Wil- liam Howell Pierson moved from Alabama to Texas, locating in Rusk county, where he owned several hundred acres of land and carried on ex- tensive farming operations. He made his home in the town of New Salem, near the west line of Rusk county, and while there he was elected .and served as justice of the peace for some twelve or fourteen years. He sold his farm afterward and moved to Gilmer, Upshur county, for the purpose of giving his children better edu- cational advantages. He died there in 1868, at the age of fifty-four years. His wife, to whom he was married in Tuscaloosa county, Alabama, was Miss Malinda Sharp, a Tennesseean by birth. She was injured in a cyclone at Emory, Rains county, Texas, March 17, 1894, and died from injuries on the 24th of that month, at the age of seventy-four years. Of her ten children, seven sons and three daughters, six sons grew to maturity.

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

Marshall S. Pierson dates his birth April 6, 1838, and was in his tenth year when he came with his parents to Texas. Up to the age of fif- teen his time was divided between work on the farm and attendance at the common schools. His father then sent him to a high school at Larrissa, Cherokee county, where he had been less than a year when he was taken ill with ty- phoid fever. As soon as he recovered he re- turned home, and again went to the schools near his home, attending school off and on until he was nineteen. At that age he was employed by his uncle, Marshall Pierson, in the general mer- chandise business, and remained with him two years. Then he began teaching school. After he had had ten months' experience in teaching, he was employed by some of the more wealthy people of the community to teach a private school, and was thus occupied when the country became intensely excited over Civil war events. Closing his school, Mr. Pierson enlisted, in the spring of 1862, in Company C, Seventeenth Regiment, Texas Cavalry, commanded by Col. James R. Taylor; and soon after entering the service was elected lieutenant of his company. He participated in all the engagements in which his regiment took part, many of them hotly con- tested fights. At the battle of Mansfield, Louis- iana, he was wounded in the foot, which laid him up for a while. Several officers of his command were killed in that engagement and the adjutant of the regiment was wounded. Before he could walk Mr. Pierson was in the saddle on duty and about a month after the fight he was appointed to act as adjutant in place of the disabled officer, a position he filled until the close of the war. His regiment disbanded on the Brazos river in southern Texas.

On his return home from the war, Mr. Pier- son resumed his work in the school room, as teacher at New Salem. He continued teaching four years, after which he went to Emory, Rains county, and engaged in the mercantile business on his own account, a business he continued for a period of thirty-three years, ten years after his coming to Haskell county. He also has a mer- cantile establishment at Winsboro, Wood county, which is in charge of his brother, W. C. Pierson. It was in 1890 that Mr. Pierson came

to Haskell county. His first work here was in connection with the organization of the Haskell National Bank, of which he was made president, a position he has since occupied. This bank was organized with a capital stock of fifty thou- sand dollars, which in 1903 was increased to sixty thousand dollars, and which is one of the most successful business enterprises of the town. Mr. Pierson is also a stockholder and president of the First National Bank of Aspermont, Tex- as. In Haskell and Stonewall counties he has large farming and stock interests, having some two hundred and fifty acres of land under culti- vation.

Mr. Pierson was first married July 13, 1865, to Miss Roxana Ryan, a native of Union Par- ish, Louisiana, born July 30, 1845. She died May 31, 1881, leaving five children, as follows : Lee, William, Alice, wife of D. R. Couch, Mar- shall and Samuel. He was married again, April 8, 1883, to Miss Bettie Barker of Emory, Rains county, Texas, who died December 19th of the same year. His present wife he married De- cember 1, 1886. Mrs. Pierson, formerly Miss Maggie Rice, is a native of Laclede county, Mis- souri, and was born September 20, 1863. They have six children, three sons and three daugh- ters, namely : Maggie, Mary, Cleveland, Alfred, Rice and Ruth.

Mr. Pierson has been a Mason since he was a soldier in the army, in 1864, and he has ad- vanced through the various degrees of the order up to and including the Knight Templars. For thirty-eight years he has been a worthy member of the Baptist church.

LORENZO J. PARR devotes his energies to farming and ginning at Dye Mound. His natal day was November 27, 1853, and the place of his birth Barry county, Missouri. His father, Pressley O. Parr, was born in 1831 in Tennessee and following his removal to Mis- souri was married in St. Louis county to Lizzie Sappington. Later he took up his abode in Barry county, Missouri, where he engaged in farming until 1854, when he became a resident of Grayson county, Texas, where he carried on general farming and milling, being a miller by trade. He operated both a grist and a saw

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

mill and remained there until 1863, after which he spent two years in Red River county. In 1865 he returned to St. Louis county, Missouri, where he operated a flour and saw mill, being thus engaged until 1877, when he again came to Texas. His first wife had died in Missouri about 1866 and he had been a second time married, after which he resided in Crawford county, Missouri, until his return to the Lone Star state. His remaining days were passed in Montague county, where he died in April, 1898, at the age of sixty-eight years. When in Grayson county in connection with his milling interests he also conducted a general mercantile enterprise and freighted goods from Galveston and Shreveport, Louisiana, with ox teams. In politics he was a Democrat and from the age of fourteen years was a devoted member of the Cumberland Presbyterian church, in which he filled a number of offices, while in the various activities of the church he took a helpful in- terest. His second wife was a communicant of the Catholic church and through her influ- ence he became connected with that church. Mrs. Parr is yet living and resides on the old homestead farm near Mallard. By the father's first marriage there were seven children : Lor- enzo J .; Missouri, the wife of E. Burgess; William, of the Indian Territory; Marion O., of Oklahoma; Fannie, the wife of W. Rogers; Ida, who became the wife of T. Stout and died leaving three children ; and Maggie, the wife of H. Maple. By the second marriage of Press- ley O. Parr, there were six children : Ella, the wife of Ed Crump; George and Joseph, who follow farming; Adda, the wife of R. Hernly ; Eva, the wife of Dick Hernly; and Edgar, who is living with his mother.

school land, which he devoted to general agri- cultural pursuits. This he still owns but has since purchased two other surveys, one of eighty acres and one of two hundred and seventy-five acres, making a total of five hun- dred and fifteen acres with about two hundred and twenty acres under cultivation. He now has two improved farms with good dwellings and other substantial buildings on the place, also an orchard and in fact all modern equip- ments. The fields are well tilled and good crops are harvested. In 1882 Mr. Parr built a cotton gin at Dye with a capacity of twenty- five bales per day. He operated it for some time but has recently sold it. In 1897 he built a gin at Postoak Prairie, which he conducted for two years, when he sold out. In his busi- ness undertakings he is enterprising and bases his dependence upon unflagging energy and unfaltering perseverance.

Mr. Parr was united in marriage to Miss Nanie Hughes, who was born in Crawford county, Missouri, January 26, 1856, a daughter of Hulett and Mary Hughes. Both were na- tives of Crawford county, Missouri, where the father successfully carried on general agricul- tural pursuits. He died, however, in 1856, be- fore the birth of his daughter. His widow sur- vived and carefully reared the family. Later she married again, becoming the wife of John Hyde, a farmer of prominence, whose death oc- curred in Missouri. Mrs. Hyde is yet living in Missouri at the age of seventy-seven years. She has for many years been a devoted mem- ber of the Methodist church. The children of her first marriage are : John W., who died while a Confederate soldier ; Maggie E., the deceased wife of J. Reeves; Savilla J., the deceased wife of. H. Hebley ; Sarah C., the wife of T. Ruther- ford; Amanda, the wife of C. Wright; William W., of Minnesota; and Mrs. Nancy E. Parr. To. Mr. and Mrs. Hyde were born five chil- dren : Susan I .; Jeff D .; Fannie L .; Laura A .; and John, now of Texas.

Lorenzo J. Parr was born in Missouri No- vember 27, 1853, and accompanied his parents on their various removals, coming with them to Texas in 1854, but afterward returning to Missouri, where he was reared to manhood and married. In 1877 the families all came to Texas, settling in Montague county, where Mr. and Mrs Parr have become the parents of seven children ; Fred O. P., who died at the Lorenzo J. Parr rented a farm for a year. He then bought one hundred and sixty acres of age of twelve years; Lulu, the wife of J. Mad-

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

dix; Lizzie, the wife of M. T. Pleasant; Willie O., a farmer; Mabel C., Alice and Daisy, all at home. The parents are members of the' Niet odist church and take an active and helpful interest in its work and upbuilding, Mr. Parr serving as one of its trustees and stewards. He is likewise a member of the Home Relief Society and he votes with the Democracy. He has concentrated his energies upon his bus- iness affairs, whereby he has provided a com- fortable home for his family and as the years have gone by has maintained a reputation as a reliable and substantial agriculturist.

WILLIAM H. BROWN, proprietor of the Lawn Dairy Farm located a mile north of Denison and which is the principal source of dairy supplies for the city, was born in Ken- tucky in 1864 and is a son of J. H. and Alice (Samuel) Brown. The father was born and reared in Kentucky and the mother's birth oc- curred in Missouri. In 1873 J. H. Brown came to Texas, bringing his family with him and set- tling at Fort Worth, where he and his wife have since made their home. They were the parents of ten children, of whom six are living, namely: W. H., of this review; Minnie, the wife of J. W. Tipton, of Fort Worth; Charles S., a resident of Kentucky; John M., who is living in New Mexico; James Madison, of Fort Worth; and Orrin, also of that city.

William H. Brown accompanied his parents on their removal from Kentucky to Fort Worth, where his youth was passed, and on attaining his majority he began stock-raising on his own account at Vernon, Texas, where he remained for four years. In the spring of 1895 he removed to Grayson county, settling in the southern part of Denison, where he en- gaged in stock-raising and in handling dairy products. There he resided until October, 1899, when he bought one hundred acres of land where he now resides, about two and a half miles north of the city. Here he is en- gaged extensively in handling dairy products, having a capacity of two hundred and twenty- five gallons of milk per day. He keeps one hundred and twenty Jersey cows and ships his

dairy products all over the state. He is like- wise a successful breeder of fine Jersey cattle and keeps splendid animals constantly on hand for sale. He also raises hogs and mules, while his stock and his dairy products both find a ready sale, the latter because of superior qual- ity.

In 1888 Mr. Brown was married in Tarrant county, Texas, to Miss Sarah Currie, whose birth occurred in Smith county, this state, but who was reared in Tarrant county. Her par- ents were Archibald D. and Ann (Harrold) Currie, who came from Alabama and settled in Smith county, Texas, before the Civil war. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have become the parents of six children: Nettie Belle, A. D. and Lena, all born in Tarrant county ; Vey, who was born in Willbarger county; Mary Alice and Ralph, born in Grayson county.

Mr. Brown exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Dem- ocracy and is a member of the Woodmen of the World. He is regarded as a very energetic and enterprising citizen and is much esteemed for his genuine personal worth and the success he has achieved. He has made for the Lawn Dairy Farm a splendid reputation and has ac- quired gratifying success for himself.

ROBERT E. McMURRAY, who carries on farming in Montague county, was born in Ala- bama, December 3, 1864, and in the paternal line is descended from Scotch-Irish ancestry. His grandfather, Samuel McMurray, a native of Georgia, was a blacksmith by trade and was married in Georgia, and there made his home until four of his children were born. He then removed to Alabama, where he continued blacksmithing throughout his remaining days. He served as a soldier in the war of 1812 and was a patriotic citizen, while in business affairs he was thoroughly reliable. He had two sons and four daughters: Frank; Cap, deceased ; Mrs. Matilda Sims; Mrs. Sallie Kilpatrick ; Mrs. Margaret Powell; and Mrs. Martha Win- dom.

Frank McMurray was born in Georgia and accompanied his parents on their removal to

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

Alabama, where his childhood and youth were passed and where under his father's instruction he mastered the blacksmith's trade, which he followed for many years. Subsequent to his. marriage he resided on a farm which he con- ducted in connection with the blacksmithing until 1863. All business considerations were then put aside and he rendered active service to the Confederacy as a soldier on the field of battle, only twice visiting home during the period of the war. He returned at the cessa- tion of hostilities to find that his farm, which was in the path of two armies, had been almost ruined by the foraging that had been done .. There was scarcely anything left upon the place but the land. With strong courage, how- ever, he began the work of retrieving his lost possessions, and thinking that he might do better elsewhere he removed to Arkansas in 1868 and in 1871 came to Texas, locating near Mount Pleasant, Titus county, where he bought land and developed a good farm. At that time he abandoned blacksmithing and gave his entire attention to his agricultural pursuits until his death. In early manhood he wedded Miss Minerva Sims, a native of Ala- bama, and a daughter of Joel Sims, of Georgia, who devoted his life to farming and to the work of the Baptist ministry. He was a zeal -. ous and earnest preacher of the Word and also a capable business man. His children were William, Thomas, Samuel, Doc, Andrew, Evaline, Mary, Martha, Minerva, Hattie, and James, who died after reaching manhood.

esteemed by those who came within the circle "of his friendship. The children of his first marriage were: Joe, a prominent farmer of Montague county; James F., of Oklahoma ; Maggie, the wife of J. T. Lynch; and Robert E. There were four children of the second marriage, William, Rebecca, Minty and Mil- ton.

Robert E. McMurray came with his parents to Texas, in which state he was reared and ac- quired the greater part of his education. He remained at home until after the death of his parents and then started out to make his own way in the world. He was first employed as a farm hand and gradually he made his way into Montague county, where in 1889 he mar- ried. Having the impetus to provide for a home of his own he began farming, purchas- ing land near the town of Montague, where he remained three years. He then sold out and removed to the old home farm belonging to his wife's mother, where he spent four years. He next bought land southwest of Montague, living there for five years, and after disposing of that property he purchased two hundred and forty acres of well improved land in the valley of Dye creek. He has since given his attention to the further improvement and de- velopment of this property. He has repaired the buildings and cultivated the farm and now has a splendid property, thoroughly equipped with modern conveniences, including telephone connections with the adjacent business centers. He has one hundred acres under cultivation, While away from home in defense of the Con- ' he raises some stock and both branches of his federacy Mr. McMurray was called upon to business are proving profitable. This property he has lately disposed of and moved to a farm north of St. Jo. He has also acted to some extent as agent for the Home Relief Life In- surance Company, in which he also holds a policy. mourn the loss of his first wife. Later he married again and his second wife died in March, 1874, while he passed away in May of the same year. He was a stalwart Democrat but never an office seeker. He held member- ship in the Missionary Baptist church and his In December, 1889, Mr. McMurray wedded Miss Mattie A. Stout, a native of Tennessee, in which state her parents, Robert K. and Ma- linda (Mathews) Stout, were married. Her mother was a daughter of Hider Mathews of Alabama, who removed to Tennessee and at life was at all times honorable and upright, winning him the confidence and trust of those with whom he was associated. He possessed a social nature, enjoyed extending his hospi- tality to his many friends and was loved and

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

the time of the Civil war went north to Illi- nois, where he continued to carry on general agricultural pursuits until his death. He was also a leading member of the Methodist church, an earnest exhorter and a helpful church worker. His children were James, Mrs. Ma- linda Stout, John, Joshua, William, Benajmin, Robert K., Mathew, Ann and Nicey.

Robert K. Stout was born and reared in Tennessee and after his marriage began his farming there, in which work he was success- fully engaged at the time of the outbreak of hostilities between the north and the south. In 1861 he joined the Confederate service, in which he continued until 1865. He was never wounded nor taken prisoner but was on ac- tive duty, being often in the thickest of the fight. He returned home to find his farm dev- astated, owing to the ravages of war, but at once began to obliterate the traces of the for- aging that had been done by further cultivat- ing and improving the land and there continued to carry on general agricultural pursuits until 1882, when he sold that property and came to Montague county, Texas, purchasing a farm on Dye creek, where he resided until his death, July 11, 1893. He tilled the soil and raised some stock. He was quite successful in his farming operations, both in Tennessee and Texas. He was an active business man and a good financier and aggregated a desirable es- tate. He held membership in the Methodist church and the Masonic fraternity, and his up- right life commended him to the confidence of all. His widow survives and at the age of sev- enty-four years makes her home with her daughter, Mrs. McMurray. She is a worthy member of the Methodist church. In their family were five children: Wiley, a promi- nent farmer of Montague county ; Nancy, who died at the age of eighteen years; Thomas, of Oklahoma; Tennessee, the wife of James Mc- Murray; and Mattie, the wife of R. E. Mc- Murray.

To our subject and his wife have been born five children: Grover C., born October 20, 1890: Robert E. Lee, September 4, 1893 ; Alice

G., May 2, 1896; Eunice L., March 8, 1899; and Jolly Joe, November 24, 1902. The parents hold membership in the Methodist church and Mr. McMurray votes with the Democracy. He is regarded as one of the substantial citizens of the county, a position to which he has attained entirely through his own efforts, and his life record proves what can be accomplished by determined and earnest purpose and shows that success is ambition's answer.

ARTHUR C. FOSTER. The progenitor of the Foster family in this country came from England and settled in eastern Virginia early in the eighteenth century. His first name, as also that of his wife, is unknown, but it is known that he was a highly respected farmer and had ex- tensive possessions. Arthur Foster, his son, was born in the region of country now constitut- ing Southampton county, Virginia, about 1732; married Martha Collier, the daughter of a wealthy colonist, who came from England and settled in Virginia, and he and four of his sons fought for independence in the war of the Rev- olution. At the age of eighty-two years, while still active and vigorous, he met with an acci- dent that caused his death. His widow survived him eight years and was the same age as her husband when she died. In their family were thirteen children, ten sons and three daughters. Their first child, John Foster, born January 18, 1761, distinguished himself in the Revolution by his cool and intrepid bravery and his fidelty to every trust reposed in him. At the close of the war he migrated to Columbia county, Georgia, where he taught school. He married one of his pupils, Elizabeth Savidge, eldest daughter of Rev. Lovelace Savidge, the date of her birth be- ing April 12, 1769. Their marriage occurred September 8, 1785. In Columbia county, where Colonel John Foster lived for many years, he was held in high esteem as a public spirited and influential citizen. He and his wife were the parents of twelve children, of whom James, the eldest, was born July 21, 1786, married Mary Ellen Hill, and died January 9, 1843, in Foster's settlement. Tuskaloosa county, Alabama. James Foster was a man of thoughtful and industrious

Abfaster.

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HISTORY OF NORTH AND WEST TEXAS.

habits, of benevolent and amiable disposition, of unbending integrity, and of remarkable self con- trol. He lived with his parents in Columbia county until his marriage, when he settled on a place near by, and remained there until the fall of 1818. Then he moved to Tuscaloosa county, Alabama, and pitched his tent in a big cane brake on the east bank of the Black Warrior river, within a few miles of the southern boun- dary of the county. His wife, whose maiden name was Mary Ellen Hill, was born in Abbe- ville county, South Carolina, February 6, 1791, and her marriage occurred at the same place, May 19, 1807. Their children were thirteen in number, six sons and seven daughters, of whom Arthur, the eighth, born August 31, 1823, was the father of Arthur Crawford Foster. Arthur Foster married Elizabeth Amelia Foster, his cousin and daughter of John L. S. Foster, and to them were given eleven children, six sons and five daughters, of whom Arthur Crawford Foster was the fourth.

Arthur Crawford Foster, the direct subject of this sketch, was born in Tuscaloosa county, Ala- bama, January 31, 1853. When he was about two months old his parents came to Texas and settled in Bexar county, near San Antonio, where they lived until he reached his fifth year, removing thence to Oktibbeha county, Missis- sippi, where he was reared to manhood in Stark- ville, the county seat. . He received his early education in the schools of that place, and in 1871-72 lived in Clayton, Barbour county, Ala- bama, where he studied law in the office of his uncle, John A. Foster, who was chancellor of the district, and was admitted to the bar in that county in 1873. Afterward he practiced law in Starkville, Mississippi, and at Rutherford, Ten- nessee, for a period of nearly two years. He came to Texas in 1874, stopped in Van Zandt county, and taught school in Van Zandt, Kauf- man, Lee and Burleson counties until 1882, when he returned to Starkville, Mississippi. Two years later he came back to Texas, arriv- ing here in March, 1884, and locating in Throck- morton county, from whence he removed, in November of the same year, over into Haskell county, which has since been his home and where he has been successfully engaged in the

practice of law and doing also a large real-estate business.

Up to the time he came to Haskell Mr. Foster had been able to accumulate little if any of this world's goods, but as the result of his labors here he is today ranked as one of the wealthiest men in the county. He owns six thousand acres of land, all in Haskell county, and nearly all farming land, two thousand acres being now un- der cultivation. When the Haskell National Bank was organized in 1890, Mr. Foster was made its vice-president, a position he filled for ten years, up to 1900, when he sold his bank stock and severed his connection with the bank. Mr. Foster has never been in politics and about the only office in municipal affairs he has filled has been that of school trustee. At this writing he is president of the Board of School Trustees. In his legal practice here he has confined him- self almost exclusively to land litigation. The county records will show that he has been more interested in this line of business than any other man in the county.

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A twentieth century history and biographical record of north and west Texas, Volume I, Part 94

Author: Paddock, B. B. (Buckley B.), 1844-1922; Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago, pub Publication date: 1906 Publisher: Chicago, New York, The Lewis publishing co. Number of Pages: 968

Author: Paddock, B. B. (Buckley B.), 1844-1922; Lewis Publishing Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: Chicago, New York, The Lewis publishing co.
Number of Pages: 968